


Before I Go

by Ecris



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Angst, Confessions, Drinking, First Kiss, Fluff and Angst, Goodbyes, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-29
Updated: 2018-01-29
Packaged: 2019-03-11 00:03:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13512549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ecris/pseuds/Ecris
Summary: It's been two years since Link woke up in the Shrine of Resurrection. He's done everything he can for his final fight with Ganon, but there's one last thing he needs to do before he can go.





	Before I Go

**Author's Note:**

> For best reading experience, [play this on loop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oAViivjfhA) while you read.

Before I Go

 

It was Laflat who told him. He’d been walking back from Inigo with Bazz, worrying over a fresh scar on his captain’s shoulder after an arrow had burrowed into his side.

“At least it wasn’t the shock arrow,” Sidon attempted a smile, but the bloody bandage Bazz held to his side made his expression fall flat. His fidgeted with his cravat in worry, and tried to keep his eyes on the road before him. Bazz seemed more angered than pained by the arrow still partially stuck in him, but his anger wasn’t at the Lizalfos who’d managed to hit him.

“I’d rather it have been neither,” his captain grimaced. He wasn’t limping, but he winced every other step. The bits of the arrow Sidon hadn’t managed to dig out were still lodged inside. If it wasn’t their shock arrows it was their damned forked weapons, made with cheap brittle metal. It wasn’t the first time either of them had seen a wound like it, and though it hurt, by now they knew that a steady pace and a trip to their healer was the easiest remedy. Walking wasn’t doing him any good, but swimming back to the Domain would dig the shards in even further at best, and Bazz had adamantly refused Sidon’s offer to carry him. Bazz spared a look at his guilty prince, just to see him flinch.

“I’m so sorry Bazz, I’ve been… prone to distraction recently,” Sidon said weakly. If he hadn’t been daydreaming he might have seen them sooner. He’d been using patrol as an excuse to wait for Link, but with no sign of him after months and only a short letter with a promise to visit soon he’d received just before the start of winter, Sidon was at the end of his patience. Instead of calming him, the fresh air of spring only served his anxiety. Winters were hard enough for the ones lucky enough to have homes. How would Link have fared, after this past winter- one of the worst he’d ever seen? Was Link as infallible as ever? Or had he fallen ill? Disease was more merciless than a Lynel.

He knew from the way Bazz was looking at him out of the corner of his eye that his requests to join patrol hadn’t been subtle. Passing off the sudden requests as “needing the exercise” was probably more damning than anything. Both of them knew well enough that Link liked to come up their main path, happy to loot shock arrows from unsuspecting Lizalfos. It must have been even more obvious, now that his inattentive musing had led to a panicked fight to keep his captain from being killed under his watch by two Lizalfos and one shock arrow. He should have seen them from the tower before they had even gotten close enough to fire. It was only luck and adrenaline that had lent him the speed to shoot both of them before the second monster’s arrow, sparking with electricity and the front of the bow, followed the first.

“It won’t happen again,” Sidon promised as they passed under the first arch of the Domain’s bridge. “It was inexcusable and I should have never put you in danger. I’m so incredibly sorry, my dear friend. Please, let me make it up to you any way I can.”

Bazz sighed, his tense shoulders falling. Damn Sidon, he couldn’t stay mad at him. Not when he made the mistake of looking up at him, and his friend’s soppy eyes were full of genuine remorse. Like a kicked guppy. “Well… you’re relieved from patrol. For three weeks. Or until I feel like you’ve learned your lesson.”

Despite Bazz being only a few years older, and how long they’d been friends, Sidon nodded as if Bazz’s words carried the same weight as his father’s. Bazz smirked at Sidon’s somber expression. “And I’ll need that bottle of stamella brew I know you’ve been hiding since the dinner after Vah Ruta.”

The prince’s head snapped up, his face a mix of horror and flushed cheeks. “I… I’m afraid I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Bazz tilted his head skeptically, looking up at Sidon, who had stopped suddenly. Who was pointedly avoiding his gaze. He could see his friend’s brow twitch as he looked ahead deliberately. After a tense moment, his eyes darted down to Bazz, and down to Bazz’s bandaged side. A fatal mistake. Bazz watched his Prince’s resolve crumble within seconds.

Sidon sighed dramatically. “Deal. I’ll bring it to you after you’re done in the medbay.”

“No need,” Bazz waved him off as he started to walk ahead stiffly. “I’ll find you, and we can share it. You look like you need it just as badly.”

Though Sidon ducked his head  away at the statement, Bazz spotted the look in his eyes as he glanced back at his friend. It was the same look he’d been wearing for the last four months, since the last letter from the Champion. The same look he’d been wearing up in the Inigo tower as Bazz patrolled on foot. If Bazz didn’t know better he might tease him, but he knew that never seeing Link again was too real of a possibility, too close to Sidon’s inner demons. Which is exactly why he’d taken pity on him and let him join patrols, and why he could only be so angry that he would be sporting a bandage for the next two weeks. Seeing Sidon like this was more painful than any arrow. He knew Sidon’s heart was fighting back his worst fear and memory. He’d lost his cheer, and had spent more nights awake by his sister’s statue than Bazz had ever seen. If you knew him well enough, and Bazz did, you could see the faint bags under his eyes that he hid with his unique brand of forced enthusiasm. He couldn’t begin to guess his prince’s pain, but that didn’t mean Bazz wasn’t going to lord this over Sidon’s head for more than just a bottle of wine. Just not until he could lift Sidon’s spirits with some spirits of their own.

“Thank you,” Sidon said quietly. “I don’t… I don’t deserve your kindness after today, but thank you.” He smiled down at Bazz, sad more than anything else. The sight tugged at Bazz’s heart, and his eyes were almost magnetically drawn to the memorial at the center of the square, incidentally catching sight of the Zora running towards them.

“My Prince!” Laflat breathed heavily as she ran, her jewelry glittering with each stride in the early morning light. Bazz stood at attention immediately, wincing only barely. The tone of her voice had Sidon copying him instinctively as if he was the one reporting to her. She came to a shaky stop before them, her tablet clutched to her middle and the other hand holding herself up by her chest. “Prince Sidon, there you are,” she gasped. “The Champion.”

Sidon’s heart seized in his chest.

“Link?” he managed to breathe.

“He’s alright,” Laflat rushed to say. “He’s just, he’s got…” She struggled for a moment, gripping her tablet tightly as she struggled to catch her breath. Her mouth twisted and she drew in a breath before settling on, “He’s here. Waiting at the shrine.”

Sidon relaxed visibly, until she spoke again.

“He was asking for you to meet him there,” she added softly. Bazz watched Sidon tense immediately.

Link never waited to find Sidon, or waited at all.

Something was wrong.

“Thank you for telling me, Laflat,” Sidon said, evenly and unnaturally formal. He turned to Bazz then, and placed a hand on his elbow. “I’ll meet with you later, Bazz, after you see the healer.”

Bazz gripped his prince’s elbow in turn. “I look forward to it.”

Sidon nodded and broke away from his hold. It was telling that when he walked towards the shrine, Laflat did not follow him. Instead, she turned to Bazz, and attempted to smile.

“Let’s get you to Corpus, see if he can fix you up.”

 

(o)

 

Sidon descended the steps slowly. His heart pounded, eager and afraid all at once. The morning light, angled as it was, kept the shrine’s chamber dark until the set his foot on the last step. As his eyes adjusted to the dimmer light, he began to make out the small shape of his friend, sitting on the pedestal of the shrine in his Champion blue.

He felt his breath catch and his jaw snap shut with a click.  Link looked… different. His hair was longer and his body thinner. Subtle dark curves under his eyes belied the determination he saw in them. His cheeks were more hollow, his muscles more lean. It had only been six months, but either poor diet or the passage of time had made his cheekbones and jaw more prominent. Sidon’s eyes seemed to be stuck tracing the line of them, down to his throat and back up to the curve of his mouth.

A glint of metal just over Link’s shoulder managed to tear Sidon away, which glimmered as his friend turned to him. His attention shifted instantly. Somehow, he knew instinctively what the blue toned metal belonged to. The sword that seals the darkness. A shield hung off his back as well, its craftsmanship apparent, distinctly Hylian and obviously well made. With the Champion’s blue, Link looked every part the hero of legend.

Sidon’s heart plummeted.

He’d always hated that particular shade of blue.

Link smiled beatifically up at him, and signed a quick hello. Sidon beamed back automatically as he joined him at the shrine, hoping his momentary lapse went unnoticed.

“Link! We’ve missed you!” Sidon clasped his friend’s hands tightly. He knelt down on one knee so he could see Link roll his eyes at Sidon’s exaggerated exuberance. Sidon hammed it up, holding a hand over his heart. “I’ve been waiting tirelessly for your arrival! It’s been far too long my dearest friend.”

 His heart swelled as Link laughed. Hopefully Link would think it was part of the joke; he didn’t need to know exactly how true those words were.

 _I’m sorry_ , Link signed after he’d freed his hands. _I would have come sooner but I got caught up doing…_ Link’s hand slowed to a stop, frowning slightly as he tried to find the words. Eventually he gave up, and gestured to the sword slung across his shoulder.

Sidon felt his face fall as he looked at the sword, his suspicions confirmed. “The sword that seals the darkness…” he muttered. He turned back to Link, who was watching him carefully. Sidon forced a smile, trying for reassuring. “This only proves you’re a hero worthy of legend. I’m proud to call you my friend.”

Link’s face flushed immediately. He rubbed the back of his neck and laughed self-consciously, something he’d done so often that Sidon’s heart ached even more, seeing it again. He smiled wider anyway, and laughed along with him.

“And the shield?” Sidon asked after they’d both gone silent. Link stiffened, then shrugged, avoiding his gaze as his hands moved carefully.

_From Hyrule Castle._

Sidon’s hands tightened on Link’s knees, not realizing he had placed them there until Link made a face when Sidon’s claws pricked his skin through the cotton of his pants. He relaxed them immediately, but his eyes were still trained intently on Link.

“You went to the castle?” he asked, voice squeaking. He cleared his throat, floundering for the right words. Even though he’d let off on his grip, his body was stiff as he swallowed his inherent panic. He looked over Link once again, seeing nothing more than what he had seen before, even if his vision had been clouded with longing. Link was fine. But he didn’t want to think about why Link had gone. He stalled. “Well you, uhm, you certainly managed it fantastically. How… how was it?”

Link sighed and fiddled the backs of his gloves for a while. He was still looking at the ground to Sidon’s left.

 _It wasn’t the first time I’ve been there,_ Link admitted. His gaze fell to his hands. _It wasn’t so bad. After the trials for the Master Sword, nothing really fazes me anymore._

Link gave him a half-hearted smile, which Sidon attempted to return with a soft laugh. He tried desperately not to think of what could be worse than facing the army of Guardians surrounding Hyrule Castle, for his own heart’s sake. Unfortunately, the only other thing his mind could focus on is why Link had gone to the Castle so many time. Why Link had asked for him at the shrine, and waited for him in his tunic with the legendary sword strapped to his back.

Sidon took a deep breath  to calm his racing heart. He put on his very best and bravest smile and voiced the very question that he feared he already knew the answer to as soon as he caught sight of the legendary sword. “You’re ready to face Ganon, then?”

He got a nod as Link turned his focused eyes back to him. His jaw was set and his head high. The very picture of a hero. Sidon tried to soak in the image, wishing that Link’s eyes were anything other than Champion blue. As much as it hurt him, Link’s eyes enchanted him anyway.

“I know you can do it,” Sidon assured himself. His words sounded true enough, though he knew they masked his fear. He saw Link sit a little straighter with the encouragement. “You’re absolutely amazing. If there’s anyone who could defeat Ganon, it’s you. I believe in you!”

Link laughed at the last part, even more when Sidon struck the pose that had become something of an inside joke between them. Link copied him as he laughed, right down to the overly-wide smile. Sidon melted a little as he laughed with him.

Link smiled at him gently. _Thank you,_ he signed. _For everything_.

Sidon waved him away with his hand. “Of course. Should you ever need us, know we are all in your debt, and you have all of our thanks.” He smiled down at Link, though it fell when he saw Link frown. He couldn’t keep the expression as he asked the one thing he’d been dreading.

“Two years passed so quickly!” Far too quickly, he thought to himself. “Though I’m happy to see you again… did you come to say goodbye?”

Link squirmed on the pedestal as he took a shaky breath. It was the first time Sidon had ever seen Link unsure, and he very nearly let his heart voice all the fears in his head and beg Link to stay.

 _One last thing,_ Link signed slowly, his eyes meeting Sidon’s, _Before I go, I have to tell you something._

“Of course,” Sidon was going to say, but then tiny hands were pulling him down by his fins and he was forced to steady himself on the platform to keep from falling onto Link. Link closed the gap anyway, and kissed him sweetly.

Every last piece of Sidon shattered.

His entire world fell down around him and left him there alone with Link. Link, who smelled like the wilds of Hyrule itself, who was warm and soft and kissing him like Link was about to die and maybe he was. Sidon pulled him close by the back of his head, reveling in the deeper kiss as their mouths opened for each other and the feel of the silky hair he threaded through his fingers. He’d been longing to feel it, to touch Link, to know him, and a groan built up in his chest as he pulled Link closer and lost himself in the kiss. He didn’t want to pull away, and neither did Link, who pulled his fins harder and made the barest noise as their tongues met.

Sidon felt one of Link’s hand touch his cheek gingerly, almost reverently, and he tilted his head into it as they kissed. Moment after, Sidon tasted salt in their kiss, and Link broke away. His eyes fluttered open, beautiful and unforgettable. Sidon watched the tears pool in them, and loved the color for the first time in his life.

“Link,” he breathed out. He felt a tear roll down his cheek, matching the wet streaks that were already running down Link’s face. His Champion searched his eyes as he wiped away Sidon’s tear with a trembling hand. Sidon laughed, the noise broken and interrupted by a sob. “Oh Link don’t tell me that now. You can’t kiss me now.”

His voice shook as his mouth twisted in pain. He had resisted, he had been strong. He had never told Link anything of his feelings, not even when he’d begun to question if they were returned. After all the suffering of the morality of his new love, praying to his sister for forgiveness, and coming to terms with his heart he knew he couldn’t tell Link until he’d turned eighteen. That’d been some time ago, and somehow the rule had turned into until after Link had come home again from Hyrule Castle when his fears and insecurities choked him whenever he saw his friend.

Now he knelt before Link, who cradled his face as tears ran down and pressed his forehead against his with his heart swelling at the same time it broke. He wiped away his beloved friend’s tears, knowing that however much it hurt him now, he could never bring himself to be mad, especially as Link’s eyes filled with more tears, and behind them, fear.

 _I’m sorry,_ Link signed. _I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I couldn’t-_

“Oh Link,” Sidon whispered as he pulled Link from the pedestal and wrapped him in his arms. His anger faded when Link threw his arms around his neck and buried his head in the crook of his shoulder. He felt Link’s shoulders shake with silent sobs, watched as the sword moved with him. He shut his eyes so he wouldn’t have to look at the thing and breathed in the scent of Link’s hair. Sidon held him there, still and unmoving, until he could feel the warmth of the sun reach his back, until Link had become quiet again. As soon as Sidon shifted, Link pulled away from his chest, eyes red and puffy. Sidon curled his hand against Link’s cheek, letting out a haggard breath when Link kissed his palm and looked up at him apologetically. Sidon met him in a kiss again, which he broke quickly to save himself from more pain.

His heart was heavy as he spoke. “Come back to me. Please.” He didn’t care if it was selfish, or unlucky, or wrong. He needed Link to come home, needed to feel something other than grief and terror when he looked at that damned blue tunic. If Link, the most selfless man he knew, could be selfish this one morning then so could he. His greedy fears swallowed him, and he took Link’s hand in his own. “Please, Link.”

Link, bless him, smiled up at him like he wasn’t asking for the entire world. He placed a small hand at the center of Sidon’s chest, and spelled firmly.

_I promise._

Sidon gasped as he held back another sob. Link’s soft blue eyes looked up brightly at him, and from the strength he found there, he let Link go.

His Champion straightened his tunic as he stood, and leaned in for one more sweet kiss before he turned and dissolved into the blue light of the Sheikah slate’s strange magic.

Sidon made it to his chambers before breaking down.

It wasn’t until hours later, when he heard a gently knock on the door, that he returned back to reality. He opened the door without much thought, surprised to see Bazz standing there. His friend took one look at him and held out his arms. It only took Sidon a moment to recover before he fell into his friend’s arms, or more accurately, scooped his friend into a death grip that only relented when Bazz started choking.

“The arrow, the arrow!” Bazz coughed, and Sidon let him go with a flurry of apologies. Bazz held up two glasses, which stopped him.

“Do we still need these, or are we drinking from the bottle?”

Sidon winced.

“From the bottle then,” Bazz nodded as he walked over to where he knew Sidon had the stamella hidden. He pulled two of them out and popped the cork on the first. He waved Sidon over to the desk and handed him the bottle silently for the first taste. Sidon took his time, and Bazz frowned when he was handed back less than half the bottle. He sighed and took his own time with the bottle before setting it down between them and opening up the other bottle in advance.

“It’s going to be a long night.”

**Author's Note:**

> Based off a terrible awful idea I had when my friend Vic commissioned me to draw Link pulling Sidon down by the fins on the sides of his face. It was a very cute idea but my mind thought it might be cute if Link was pulling him down for a kiss, and then the other part of my mind helpfully supplied why Link would be pulling Sidon down for a kiss.
> 
>  
> 
> [This was the result.](http://leslietries.tumblr.com/post/170065625729/before-i-go-i-have-to-tell-you-something)
> 
>  
> 
> And then they encouraged me to write out the idea that inspired this and here we are c': 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading!


End file.
